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A Gator Winder also called a Cuban Fishing Reel rather then a Yo Yo/Halo Spool, the tapered side lets the line off easier while it's on the ground. That is unless you want to go traditional and use a traditional spool, then you need a big one that you spin in the circle formed by your thumb and fingers by rotating your hands in a circle while the dowel rotates from the friction in the opposite direction ... you'd have to see it, magical to watch somebody skilled do this. Another choice is a winder as used with the Korean Fighters. I've even seen a flier who wore a big basket around his waist with the line layed in it, he would play it out or bring it back in right into that basket, a bit cumbersum IMO.

I used to like the Linen line for its feel and the bit of stiffness but todays smaller North American Fighters are a bit small for it anymore. A heavy duty waxed thread for upholstery or carpet work works fine. Afraid I can't quote sizes, maybe somebody knows. I picked up some Bonded Thread that I think would work fine too, it has a bit of stiffness like I like, but haven't tried it yet to see how it holds up.

« Last Edit: September 29, 2009, 08:25 AM by mikenchico »

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"Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see" John W Lennon

"People do not quit playing because they grow old, they grow old because they quit playing" George Bernard Shaw

Yup, just what Mike said. Gator YoYo reel with waxed (probably by you) cotton button thread of some kind. Probably lots of details at Bruce Lambert's fighter-kite web-site and forum.

The stuff I have (and use and like) is called Glaced cotton #7, IIRC. The numbers are confusing, because I think one system calls the same weight #70.

For me (and others) it's important that you can tear the thread in your hands without much trouble (or pain or blood). If you get a really nasty tangle, you'll probably want to tear it out, but the real reason is that you'll probably end up slicing your hand by accident if the thread is strong enough to do that. It's easy to get it stuck somewhere, under a foot or around a pen in your pocket, etc., or even in your other hand(!), and you yank and it doesn't come. Tearing the line is a nuisance, but it's not as bad as slicing your hand, IMHO.

If you're either cheap or rushed, I also make nice imitation YoYo reels from an old margarine tub and an extra lid (1 tub, two lids). One lid covers the tub, the other goes underneath. Stick it together temporarily with 2-sided tape etc., then wrap 2"W package sealing tape around it so it's reasonably strong and smooth and "fair". Tie your line to it and start wrapping.

Different threads have different twists and "hands", so they should get different techniques to take them off their original spool and wrap them onto your reel. Big commercial spools are intended to have the thread taken off the TOP, not the side -- i.e., the spool doesn't rotate as the thread is removed.

In theory -- especially if the thread is untwisted and "relaxed" when you first start flying(!) -- the twists from winding it onto the top of the spool all come out when you spool it off the top, as the kite goes farther up and out. In theory. I usually try to end each session by flying straight off the reel (reel in my hand instead of on the ground) and winding up a bunch, so the spaghetti on the ground at the very end isn't a mile long.

A good trick if you do end up with a mile of spaghetti on the ground is to transfer it all, hand over hand, to a second pile before putting it on the spool. Otherwise you're trying to reel line in from the BOTTOM of the pile, which often ends badly. Or you could "land" the kite at a distance, untie it and put it away, then reel the free-ended line in, maybe even walking away from the free end as you go, so the end can spin some of the twists out. (On big sailboats, they sometimes throw long lines overboard so the ends can spin the twists out!)

I have some line wrapped on a plastic water bottle. It is indented in the center, somewhat like the old Coke bottles. Remember those? Or shaped a bit like a young woman wearing a corset. Remember those?

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